


First Meeting

by mendacium_dulce (lux_veritatis)



Series: Intertwined Minds [1]
Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU where Nagini is still a circus freak when they meet, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:26:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22617847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lux_veritatis/pseuds/mendacium_dulce
Summary: “Are you truly ignorant to the fact that they are afraid of you? Those bars... their purpose isn't merely to prevent your escape, but to ensure your captors' safety.”
Relationships: Nagini/Tom Riddle | Voldemort
Series: Intertwined Minds [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1627255
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	First Meeting

Nagini had been reading in her cage in the back of the circus when a dark-haired stranger entered the restricted area only the ringmaster and a few select members of the circus were supposed to have access to, and she immediately rose from her chair as though she had been caught doing something forbidden, only relaxing slightly when it occurred to her that if anything, the stranger would be the one punished for trespassing, that all she had to do was to remain perfectly still and _passive_ as she waited for Skender to arrive and remove the intruder.

It was then that the stranger spoke and her eyes widened.

“Why do you not resist such cruel treatment, when you are far above them?” the stranger asked, and it was impossible for her to tell whether his words were meant to comfort her or to taunt her with cruel sarcasm, to further remind her of the fact that she was a subhuman _freak_ , and before she could prevent it from happening, her legs had already carried her closer to the bars of her cage.  
  
“Who are you?” she whispered. “You shouldn’t be here. He’ll punish you if he catches you.”

Why she had warned him instead of waiting for harm to befall him at Skender’s hand, Nagini did not know, yet his words had struck a chord in her, made her think about what she wasn’t supposed to question.

“But what do you mean, 'above them'? I'm a Maledictus. How could I be anything but an underbeing?”

The stranger smiled, revealing a row of immaculate teeth, and took a step towards the cage, so they were standing face to face, and it was then that Nagini noticed how handsome he truly was.

“You are wrong,” he murmured almost intimately. “Are you truly ignorant to the fact that they are afraid of you? Those bars... their purpose isn't merely to prevent your escape, but to ensure your captors' safety.”

“I know what those bars are for,” she said, dejected. “After all, I'm a beast. A monster. It's only natural that they cage me.”

“You're a predator,” the stranger corrected her gently. “And before your fangs, before your venom, they are but helpless prey. Hence they have been doing everything in their might to cloud your awareness of this crucial fact.”

“A predator...” Nagini repeated, tasting the syllables and finding herself intrigued.

“Indeed. What is your name?”  
  
“My name is Nagini.”  
  
“It is nice to meet you at last, Nagini,” the stranger said, and his voice was smooth and melodious. “My name is Tom Riddle. If you accept my conditions, and follow them, I shall free you from this place.”


End file.
